The Han Solo Movie Cast Has Begun Filming, As Revealed In Recent Photo

The Han Solo movie cast is officially at work creating the first ever cinematic backstory to everybody’s favorite “scruffy-looking nerf herder.” They have a picture to prove it, as well, with all known cast members and both directors in the cockpit of the infamous Millennium Falcon.

That was as crowded as the cockpit of Han’s ship has ever been in cinematic history, with the previous record being only four people. In The Empire Strikes Back, Carrie Fisher, Anthony Daniels, Pater Mayhew, and Harrison Ford all rode shotgun at once in their now-famous roles of Princess Leia, See-Threepio, Chewbacca, and Han Solo, as they fled the Empire after the destruction of their Hoth base.

According to that film’s dialogue, Han Solo actually won the ship from Lando Calrissian and made a bunch of modifications to turn it into the space-bound hot rod we came to love. This tinkering may be part of the upcoming film, likely giving it a momentary feel like Vin Diesel’s The Fast and the Furious. It’s possible that those tune-up scenes were part of the charm which launched Vin Diesel’s series into a franchise lasting for seven sequels.

'The Fast and the Furious' may have initiated its charm with its "tuning" scenes. [Image by Universal Pictures]

Digital Spy says that of all of the young actors to play Han Solo, there was one they forgot. YouTube celebrity Anthony Ingruber’s impression of the smuggler looked so dead-on that you would almost mistake him for a young Harrison Ford. Instead, we’re getting Alden Ehrenreich, whose previous credits include Hail, Caesar! and Beautiful Creatures. He had impressed auditioners enough to beat out over 2,500 potential actors.

Probably the least noticeable addition to the cast is that of Joonas Suotamo, replacing Peter Mayhew as Chewbacca, Han Solo’s right-hand Wookiee. It was probably inevitable, as Mayhew has been reported to use crutches a lot lately and simply didn’t want to push it at his age.

The other noticeable recasting was that of Donald Glover as Lando, replacing Billy Dee Williams as the smooth-talking businessman with a less than shiny past. Fans will finally get more than a glimpse of that past as Han and Lando possibly meet for the first time under the tutelage of a “criminal mentor” played by Zombieland and Hunger Games star Woody Harrelson.

Woody Harrelson is set to play Han Solo's "criminal mentor." [Image by Thomas Kronsteiner/Getty Images]

The Han Solo movie’s cast seems to have been mostly set, with other roles played by Emilia Clarke of Game of Thrones fame and Fleabag star Phoebe Waller-Bridge. Directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller (The LEGO Movie) will be taking the helm of the movie Star Wars fans have been allegedly waiting on for over 30 years. Technically, this makes it the second time they’ve ever dealt with Han Solo, Lando Calrissian, and the Millennium Falcon.

It’s unknown what roles Emilia Clarke and Phoebe Waller-Bridge will play in the upcoming anthology film set for December of 2018. The Han Solo movie release date could see them playing Han’s sisters, or possibly Woody Harrelson’s daughter’s. In the latter case, we may see a bit of sibling rivalry as Han and Lando find themselves trying to win them over.

A lot of details are being kept secret as the movie has begun filming, as we’ve come to expect from Star Wars films now. Mark Hamill has come out to say that security has been ramped up to the point where even drones can’t get close enough to film anything.